"When I began my position, there were only a handful of volunteers," says Carolyn Burge. "I now lead a team of 200 volunteers who work together to minister to 300 children on a weekly basis. I also introduced the idea of an indoor playground as an outreach tool, and we currently have an average of 400 people who come to our playground each week."

Carolyn Burge, keynote speaker for "All God's Children"

For the average Sunday School teacher, these statistics may seem far removed from the everyday realities of church life. Yet such is the amazing growth story that Burge has witnessed over her nine years as Children's Pastor at Calvary (Pentecostal) Assembly in Cambridge, Ontario. And on October 20 at the "All God's Children" workshop she will be sharing some of the most important lessons that she has learned from it with members of the Diocese of New Westminster.

Burge will be the keynote speaker at "All God's Children," a one-day conference organized by the Diocesan Evangelism Unit, to be held at Holy Trinity, Vancouver. The event will also feature a rich variety of other resources connected with Sunday School ministries.

In addition to Burge's presentations, for example, participants will be able to choose from four expert-led practical workshops on topics ranging from "What to Do with a Few" to "Creative Bible Teaching."

"We try to cover a major ministry theme every year," says Unit Chair, the Rev. John Oakes, "and this year we are focusing on a very important one. It's often said that children are the future of our church. But I believe that they are very much the present too. At 'All God's Children,' our goal is to provide anyone interested in children's ministries with ideas, information and practical teaching."

Oakes is also confident that Burge's dynamic testimony will be inspirational. "Carolyn's passion is to see kids come to know Jesus and grow in a relationship with him and I know that folks will be encouraged and inspired by her sheer sense of vision."

The workshop for Sunday School superintendents and teachers will be held on Saturday, October 20, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm at Holy Trinity Anglican Church,

1440 West 12th Ave., Vancouver
. The cost will be $15 per person, which includes lunch. For registration/further information, please contact John Oakes at 604-731-3221 or evangelismunit@hotmail.com.